Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with san

How to entertain parents you don't get along with?

thegreatcokeolympics — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 10:29:58 -0800

Activities to do in San Francisco for mellow people... My parents and I will be visiting SF for christmas and staying a few days after. This is the first time in a while we are spending time together due to the inevitable drama and negativity that comes when we get together. I really want this trip to go well! I need some suggestions for activities that will keep us preoccupied (so we don't have the chance to argue or complain), but not annoy us, and by us, I mean my mother. This means nothing too loud or that has that "young person" vibe. I'm 28 and my parents are in their mid 50s, so I'm aiming for something age neutral.

I ask for suggestions because I seem to either find young person hot spots or family oriented spots (which inevitably means directed at kids), but nothing in between. Please point me in the right direction!

Also, nothing too expensive.

Thanks in advance for your help!

moving to san francisco

bananaskin — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:09:34 -0800

Is there anyone who has experience living in San Francisco and can give me advice about moving there? I live in rural midwest. I have dreamed of moving to San Francisco, CA for several years. I am sure I could find a decent paying job there, as my job is in high demand.

I am a single middle aged woman. No children. I have to do this all alone. I have no one to help me, and I am a little fearful/anxious about making such a big move, making a mistake and moving to a place I may not know is a dangerous area.

My questions are:
1. How much would rent be on a house/apartment? I want a decent sized apartment (not a studio).
2. What are safe areas to live, and dangerous areas for a single woman?
3. How do I research an area to find out if it is safe/crime or not?
4. What are the fun things to do there....cultural, musical, food, etc. and where?
Thank you everyone.

Pimp my database!

H. Roark — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:07:45 -0800

Oracle / Storage geeks: What are the alternatives to exadata for high-performance I/O with a rac system? We are getting pretty close to buying an exadata setup and I'm trying to find viable alternatives that are cost-effective and deliver similar performance. We need to be running RAC for load balancing and fault tolerance, so I believe direct attached storage like SSD-arrays is not an option. Buying a dedicated SAN seems to be lower performance and higher cost than exadata. For benchmarking the exadata system we are looking at (1/4 rack) delivers 4.5GB/sec sustained I/O to disk. Our current SAN (which is overly shared) gives us approx 150MB/sec and our 4-nic dnfs systems to a netapp runs at approx 350MB/sec.

So assuming we need at least 3GB/sec and it cant be direct-attached what are other good options out there?

Lets just ignore the other features of exadata that make it fast like smart-scan. Thanks!

What to do in the Bay Area for New Year's?

mingodingo — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:46:49 -0800

San Francisco filter: Early planning for New Year's Eve in San Francisco? Fun things to do that don't revolve around nightclubs/dancing? Here's the deal...my brother and his girlfriend are coming to visit over New Year's Eve. We'd like to go to the city (I live in the East Bay) to do something fun, but not necessarily something really crowded.

They're both science majors, and were really excited at the possibility of going to the California Academy of Sciences Nightlife event. Unfortunately, looks like they're not having the event on New Year's Eve.

So, we're basically looking for something fun and unique that wouldn't necessarily involve a nightclub scene. For instance, they loved Martuni's the last time they were here, but we weren't there on New Year's Eve, so I'm not sure how crowded it would be.

So, ideas for something similar to the Cal Academy nightlife event, or to a place with the Martuni's atmosphere? Not exactly similar, I know, but will hopefully give you an idea of what we're not interested in. Thanks!

Starting out in SF....Again!

leftfooter — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:54:02 -0800

Back in San Francisco for a Holiday, friends trying to convince me to stay. What to do???? OK, so I've been out of the Bay Area for a 10 year hiatus, mostly traveling the world and working. I still have a lot of friends here and it's been great to see & hang out with everybody. I already have plans for next summer (going back to Ireland to enjoy the festivities of the world cup). My friends have taken it upon them selves to each try & convince me to stay in the city til June. I'm not averse to the idea and I have the option of staying with a good friend in a great apartment.

This question is really a 3 parter, about getting my feet on the ground again.

Part 1:

My background is in IT and I was hoping to find some contract work. I would like to get a list of IT recruiting agencies that provide contract staff to companies in the city. Does anyone know what agencies provide IT staff to the likes of Levis, Gap, Charles Schwab etc. I've tried contacting these companies directly but they all just tell me to apply for full-time gigs.

Part II:

I've ran my own PC repair business for some time in Austin and was hoping to fix a few machines while searching for a full time gig. I've been using Craigslist to advertise on but surprisingly I have received absolutely no calls. In Austin, I got tons of work advertising on CL, but SF is dead.
Apart from Craigslist, Where should I advertise?

Part III:

Another way I was thinking of getting some extra cash was signing up to take part in Focus Groups......does anyone know of any agencies in SF that are busy with this kind of work? Or anybody got any idea how to make some quick cash while waiting on a more permanent gig?

If I can't get some work soon I'll run out of cash. This is not the end of the world as I can return to Austin & get work pretty quick. But I think I'd like to give it a shot in SF.

All suggestions welcome!

Help my dad see the Tech v. Texas game in the Bay Area!

mingodingo — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 14:02:37 -0800

Where can I see the Texas Tech v. Texas game (airing on ABC, I think) in San Francisco? Hi all--

Not a football fan, so hoping someone who is can help me out. My parents are visiting from Texas this weekend, and my dad asked that I try to find a sports bar where we can watch the Texas Tech v. University of Texas football game on Saturday.

Any tips? Bonus points if it's easily BART accessible, or near the Civic Center / Powell area.

Thanks in advance!!

SF to Portland Roadtrip

mrunderhill — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:21:39 -0800

Pacific Northwest Roadtrip: SF to Portland and back. 6 days. Which roads to take? Which towns and parks do we have to see? Your favorite spots along 1? We're interested in anything and everything. Thanks!

The noise level coming from the church across the street is driving us crazy. Help!

Anonymous — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:21:08 -0800

The noise level coming from the church across the street is driving us crazy. Help! We live right across the street from a very loud church in the Hayes Valley neighborhood of San Francisco. At first we thought it was kind of nice being near a place of worship, but now we're kind of fed up. There are very loud services with singing and all sorts of instruments that are probably amplified, as well as random drumming practices. It goes on for hours (they've been playing for at least 4 hours just today), and it's on weekdays and weekends. The services seem to be kind of irregular; it's not like we know it's going to be bad 6-8pm every Wednesday. I work from home, and it's nice to work in cafes, but I hate the feeling like I can't enjoy my own home. Plus, not being able to relax in our living room on Sunday evenings can be kind of a bummer.

What is the best way to approach this? We called in a noise complaint once - it was 10pm on a Sunday and they had been going at it for 3 hours (plus they had a van idling outside for 40 minutes). But, the cops weren't that helpful - they said they weren't going to disrupt the church service (but that's when it's noisy!) and they were trying to stay on good terms with the churches. It's also a gentrifying neighborhood, which may make things more complicated...

Getting to know San Francisco

AlliKat75 — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:00:09 -0800

Moving Help: My SO and I are moving to San Francisco in one month, and we do not know much about the neighborhoods. We have found a place we like that is within our price range. Can anyone out there tell us about this neighborhood? Chelsey Avenue and 1st Street, Richmond, CA 94801

Short notice renting art/party space in San Francisco?

dual_action — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 13:20:36 -0800

How can I find a small art gallery/event space to rent this upcoming Saturday night in San Francisco? I'm going to be in SF this weekend for a convention and would like to host a small gathering of poets/live musicians outside the hotel for a little shindig. I'm thinking about 20-30 people and would like to keep costs down below $500 for the evening. A gallery space would be perfect, but since it is short notice (long story) I know that will be difficult. I'd like to stay away from the 'hotel conference room' vibe and would prefer it to be within walking distance of Union Square. One that looked great but is unfortunately booked is here. Thanks!

suggestions for celebrating my 40th birthday?

roxie110 — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 22:36:08 -0800

suggestions for celebrating my 40th birthday in san francisco? i'm turning (*gasp*) 40 in a couple months and would love to plan something incredibly fun and distinctive to celebrate. each year i have a party at a bar, but would love to do something a bit beyond that this time. i've lived in san francisco for ages and know there are many cool places to go and things to do, but so far i haven't come up with anything that seems right. ideally the event would be accessible to a wide range of friends, and not outrageously expensive.

would welcome any and all suggestions--really!

(i)SCSI. The name says it all.

slagerst — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 05:48:14 -0800

Wasabi Storage Builder iSCSI SAN. Defunct? Serviceable? Replaceable? Hopeless? I inherited an iSCSI SAN using Wasabi Storage Builder with little to no documentation. From the looks of that website, they're defunct. So I can't even find a manual for this thing. I am new to SANs in general (though i've read this) but I understand the fundamentals after playing around with it enough.

We mount the iSCSI targets in win server 2k3 iSCSI initiator. This works mostly fine, except for how somehow one target lost its windows volumes, and now shows up as unpartitioned space in disk management.

There seems to be some method by which mounting 1 iscsi target disk automatically mounts 1 or 2 others in the same "disk pool". We've discovered no consistency in this between machines. Furthermore, the disk label and drive letter are always mounted the same, regardless of which machine they're mounted on, so that would again point to some pre-configuration on the iSCSI side, before it even is discovered by windows.

Finally, assuming I restore my shares in windows, I am thinking of replacing this wasabi software on the SAN with something else that would provide similar functionality but come from a vendor with SUPPORT.

What I'm looking for here: Thoughts about my conundrum? A pdf of the manual? An online or dead tree resource that explains it all? A guru in the NYC area that has done this many times before and would be willing to help out a midsize non-for-profit org?

I'd be glad for any ideas / suggestions the hive has.

Fun and cheap in San Francisco

RajahKing — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 17:18:21 -0800

What's fun for me and my 3.5 year old daughter to do in San Francisco and San Jose from July 22 to July 27 for cheap? Me and my lil one will be in San Francisco, as well as San Jose, starting next Wednesday. We'll be back and forth between cities visiting friends and family. We'll have about 4 little kids running amok amongst the crew. So two requests for the knowledgeable:

a) I'd love to know about timely things, like festivals, events, etc., but also we are totally ignorant of the area - so please let me know the standard fare. This is how ignorant I am - I know there are sea lions in SF, the Golden Gate bridge, and its hilly. So fill me in.

b) Please specify the cost - we are terrible misers and love a discount, super cheap, preferably free experience.

Thanks so much in advance.

Visiting the City by the Bay

wintermute2_0 — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:05:49 -0800

Where should I stay in San Francisco and how well can I get around without a car? I'm travelling to San Francisco in late September and I'm wondering if anyone has tips on reasonably nice hotels that are close to a BART station in a centrally located portion of SF. I use a wheelchair and won't have access to a car (unless I use a taxi). My budget is about $200/night.

I was in SF about 12 years ago and saw a bit of the Wharf, Golden Gate Park, and Haight-Ashbury. Will I be able to see other parts of the city using public transportation? Can I get to places like Marin County?

Thanks for any advice you can offer.

Guy's Weekend in Sunny San Diego

ieatwords — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:08:43 -0800

San Diego Shenanigans: My girlfriend is going to a bachlorette party in Vegas and I'm not about to sit home. So I'm taking a group of guys down to San Diego for a dude's weekend 9/11-13. I've been there many times but never for a full weekend. What should we not miss seeing/doing/consuming? I'm planning on Pizza Port in Solana Beach for pizza and beer, a tour of Stone Brewery and a possible poker session at a local card house. What else will make this an unforgettable weekend? We are most likely staying in the Gaslamp but can travel out by car or public trans. Please feel free to include any stereotypical guy sights and adventure.

Arriba Arriba epa epa need ayuda/help

villazapat — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 07:10:03 -0800

Hi I am going to San Antonio this weekend and wanted some suggestions of where to go and do that's kind of inexpensive but still worth an amazing experience. I am also wild about photography so what are your picks on where I can take fab pics of some stunning parts of the city. Thanks please advise.

What should a young couple do on a first-time visit to San Francisco, July 4th weekend?

whtthehecker — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 14:11:29 -0800

What should a young couple do on a first-time visit to San Francisco, July 4th weekend? I'm taking my soon to be 23 year old girlfriend to San Francisco for her upcoming birthday. I've already booked the Hotel Drisco after reading the reviews on TripAdvisor as I think it's more her style (older building with history, but not rundown). We'll be driving from Southern California so we'll have a car but from what I've read it doesn't seem like we'll need it.

I'm looking for some suggestions on places to go during our stay that first-time visitors should absolutely check out, preferably with some info on public transportation options to get there. They don't have to be family/kid friendly.

Also, since its July 4th weekend is there anything specialI should check out (I read on fireworks at Fisherman's Wharf) or places to avoid given the time? Any San Franciscan veteran tips?

living in tijuana and working in san diego

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 08:02:27 -0800

San Diego/Tijuana question. Those of you that work in San Diego - how many of you have commuted from Tijuana or have workers that do? What are your experiences doing so? I've lived abroad in Latin America, and have found the notion of living in Tijuana (lower cost of living, more vibrant city) but having a US salary in San Diego appealing.

Please, no comments from those who have visited Tijuana and found it not to their liking. I'd prefer to hear from people that actually do this commute day to day (or have colleagues that do). I know a number of people that live there and have been there a number of times myself, and i'm aware of the social issues, higher crime rate, etc - this question is not about that.

This question is anonymous because I'd prefer my current employer not to know about a potential relocation.

What's with all the un-permitted additions on houses in San Francisco?

jillsy_sloper — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 09:42:31 -0800

I'm shopping for a single-family home in San Francisco, and nearly every house I've looked at has "unwarranted" addition in the basement or rear -- either a bonus room or an entire "in-law" unit with bathroom and kitchen. My question is fourfold: 1. Why does nobody get permits for their additions? Is it particularly difficult or expensive in San Francisco to get a permit?

2. This is so prevalent, and talked about openly in real estate listings -- why doesn't the city crack down and issue fines?

3. Has anyone heard of someone in SF having to remove an un-permitted addition?

4. If I were to make an offer on one of these houses, what would I need to know? What should I do differently from bidding and signing a contract on a normal house?

One real estate site I saw online said that you should only pay what the house would be worth without the unwarranted area, because you could be forced by the city to rip out the addition at any time. But that doesn't seem to be realistic here -- in San Francisco, sellers definitely don't seem to be giving a discount based on the lack of permit for their "bonus" rooms.

I'm moving moving, out out, to Cali Cali

Never Better — Fri, 29 May 2009 13:01:51 -0800

Moving from Milwaukee, WI to take a job in Carlsbad, CA - what should I know, and where should I live? I just found out I will be changing positions at my job, which entails a move across the country to work in Carlsbad, California. I need to start planning, but I do not have a ton of time to research everything I normally would in making such a move.

As far as I know the city of Carlsbad is expensive to live in- are there cheaper areas close by where I could get by making about $2,000 a month on average? I realize this is not much, but I am intentionally keeping it a conservative estimate. I will likely bring in more than that, but I want to plan economically.

I am looking to live in a younger neighborhood (I'm 24) - I like art and music, lots of good cheap food (I can taste the burritos already) and just a fun scene to be around. I do not mind commuting, though I would rather keep it at a minimum. I have a car, but would love to use public transportation as well.

Crime is a rather important aspect as well. Though I've grown up in bad neighborhoods by Midwest standards, I would rather not live anywhere where I need to have barred windows or constantly have to watch out at night. I certainly don't need an idyllic situation, but something reasonable.

I would like to keep rent, including utilities capped at about $1,000 / month. I really have no idea if that number is fantasy land by that area's standards, so if it is, let me know. I am not 100% opposed to moving in with others really, though as an introvert I would prefer my own space.

If anyone has experience with a similar move, please fill in your experiences. I've been all over California before doing road trips and what not, but is there anything special I should know/expect going into a full move out west?

Where to go around SF in a Rental Car?

gregr — Tue, 19 May 2009 09:20:02 -0800

I'm vacationing in San Francisco, and I have a rental car that gets returned tomorrow morning. What things outside SF should I go check out? I will be in SF for the rest of week, so I have plenty of time to check out the things in the city. Oh, and I've already been to Muir Woods.

Safe place to spend the night between Phoenix and San Francisc?

twiggy32 — Sat, 16 May 2009 18:58:51 -0800

I am driving from Phoenix to San Francisco, with all my worldly possessions in the car. I plan to split the trip into two days. Any suggestions of a good place to stay overnight where my stuff will be safe in the car? I don't know yet if it will be on the weekend or on a weekday, but I want to avoid the worst of LA traffic. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

San Diego-filter

answergrape — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:37:42 -0800

We're setting sail from San Diego on May 25 for a cruise, but we have two days in San Diego beforehand. How can we work the transportation to Sea World and the wild animal park before our cruise while not being stuck going all the way back to the airport for a rental car? Is there a better area to stay or a better way to arrange transportation to support this?

Need to get in hot water in San Jose

Napoleonic Terrier — Sun, 03 May 2009 19:12:35 -0800

Suggestions for an athletic club in the South Bay, preferably San Jose?---must offer tennis, swimming, and most importantly, a hot tub/jacuzzi that's great and at least 102 degrees Fahrenheit. All anecdotes, horror stories, etc. about any South Bay facility are most welcome. Thanks.

Weekend San Antonio trip

flipmiester99 — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 06:22:16 -0800

Dallas-To-San Antonio Filter: The wife and I are going to San Antonio for a few days this weekend to get away from the kids and relax a bit. Can you recommend any scenic drives along the way other than just taking I-35 the whole time? Also, can you please give recommendations of fun things to do in San Antonio and where to go to have drinks and excellent food? Thanks in advance!!